Search Results for: Commonwealth

The Hong Kong trial of prominent pro-democracy activist and media mogul Jimmy Lai has garnered widespread attention globally. Lai, a 76-year-old British citizen and high-profile critic of Beijing, faces national security charges, and his trial is expected to take months. Lai is a prominent figure in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. His detention and subsequent trial exemplify [...]

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu suspended on Monday the country’s Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, with immediate effect over allegations of transferring funds related to the government’s social welfare program into a private bank account. The suspension order issued by the Special Advisor to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, [...]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Monday urged the newly-elected government of Bangladesh to redirect its course towards democracy and expressed concern over the violence-marred atmosphere during Sunday’s poll. Bangladesh’s 12th parliamentary election was conducted on January 7. The country’s army was deployed days earlier to keep peace ahead of the polls. [...]

“The most tragic thing in the world and in life, readers and brothers of mine, is love. Love is the child of illusion and the parent of disillusion; love is consolation in desolation; it is the sole medicine against death, for love is death’s brother.” Miguel de Unamuno, Tragic Sense of Life Looking Beneath: World [...]

This comment was written on Ngiyampaa Wangaibon Country. I pay my respects to the custodians that have cared for this Country for time immemorial. I acknowledge when First Nations Peoples thrive, all of Australia benefits. A recent Australian referendum that aimed to strengthen the presence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples within the country’s [...]

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron announced on Tuesday coordinated sanctions with the US to target Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leaders and financial supporters. The goal of the sanctions is to restrict the terror groups’ operational abilities. The sanctions include travel bans, asset freezes and arms embargoes against four Hamas senior leaders and two [...]

Why do coups d’état happen? Is it that bad leadership pushes people to their boiling points, compelling them to take matters into their own hands? Or is it a lack of adequate preventative laws? Do external factors play a role? And in Africa specifically, how much of an impact does history tend to have? Moreover, [...]

An appeals court in Pennsylvania affirmed a trial court ruling on Thursday which held that welfare fraud and outstanding restitution balance cannot be used to justify the denial of housing assistance. The decision signaled a win for applicants seeking housing vouchers in Pennsylvania. The appeal, heard before the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, concerned the Lawrence [...]

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court found Wednesday in two rulings that the state cannot enforce a regulation directed by executive order to make power plant owners pay for their planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions because it was created without legislative approval, dealing another setback to the centerpiece of former Governor Tom Wolf’s plan to fight global warming. [...]

Matthew Hedges, a British academic and researcher, was arrested and accused of espionage in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in May 2018. There were allegations that Hedges was tortured while in detention. According to reports, he was subjected to solitary confinement, physical assault, prolonged interrogation and denial of basic rights during his imprisonment. The UAE [...]